Frank Conlon/The Star-LedgerNewly hired people that will work at the Prudential Center attend a job orientation program at NJIT.

After waiting in line for hours to apply for a job at the Prudential Center in Newark last month, Saleemah Sanders was pessimistic about her prospects.

With roughly 6,000 applicants for 1,380 positions at the new sports venue, the odds seemed slim. So Sanders, a 24-year-old Newark resident, was tickled when she got a call back and landed a part-time gig as a ticket usher.

"I was surprised," said Sanders, who had been searching for a new job for a year. "You go to a lot of job fairs and you don't get hired."

When the arena opens its doors for Bon Jovi on Thursday, there will be 577 Newarkers collecting tickets, ushering fans, preparing food, cleaning the premises and working security. For these residents and the city, the jobs are one of the promised payoffs for spending at least $311 million in taxpayer dollars to build the 18,000-seat facility.

The jobs are critical in a city where the unemployment rate of 8.5 percent is nearly double the state and national figure. The thousands of Newarkers who stood in line for hours at an arena job fair last month are a tangible and painful testament to the city's unemployment woes.

Dale Adams, general manager of the Prudential Center, said AEG, the company managing the arena, carefully sifted through thousands of resumes and whittled down the list of candidates for jobs.

"Not everybody who interviews for a job gets a callback," he said. "It's just part of the hiring process."

Most of the arena jobs are part-time and pay between $10 to $15 per hour without health benefits. So far 951 people have been hired for jobs and the center is still hiring. Prudential Center officials did not have a breakdown on how many Newarkers hold supervisory jobs.

"This represents a good start, and we are grateful for the hard work exhibited by the Devils, their vendors and partners," said Stefan Pryor, the deputy mayor for economic development. "Given the high level of interest among qualified Newark residents, we would like to continue to work with the Devils to increase this number over time."

Brittany Thompson, 21, said she hoped to get a supervisor's job because it paid more money. Instead, she landed a job as a ticket-taker, earning $12 an hour.

Still, Thompson said she was pleased to get hired since so much time had passed before she got a call from a recruiter.

"I knew a lot of applications are going in the trash," she said. "I was starting to give up."

Adams said those who did not get a supervisor's job should not be discouraged. The supervisory jobs were filled faster, he said, because there are fewer of them available.

"There is no crummy job," Adams said. "If you're good at a job, you can be promoted and running this building in 10 years."

At a job orientation Oct. 12 at the New Jersey Institute of Technology campus center, officials from the New Jersey Devils and the Prudential Center hit upon the tenets of operating a successful business: customer service and teamwork.

Lou Lamoriello, the general manager for the Devils, gave the 500 new employees assembled in the stuffy room a pep talk.

"Do the best you can in your position," he said. "Worry about what you have to do and be the best in what you do. Don't compete against the person sitting next to you."

Adams said the arena is their home too.

"This is about the home team," Adams said. "Who takes more pride in your home than you do?"

Darryl Matthews, 55, is one Newarker who cannot wait to start his new job as a guest services supervisor. A lifelong resident, Matthews said he hopes the arena will change people's negative perception of the city.

"Now I have the opportunity to say, 'Welcome to Newark,'" Matthews said. "I have to be the ambassador of Newark. Whatever they used to say about Newark, they won't be able to say again."

Vivian Barnett, a Newark resident who was hired as a ticket-taker, said city residents deserved first dibs on the arena jobs since it is in their backyard.

"There is so much that is needed to run this place that there should be more than 1,000 jobs offered," said Barnett, who also works in the Newark school district. "I thought Newarkers should have first choice."

Not everyone, though, was so fortunate. Chian Weekes, 22, was one of those who waited in line for hours but didn't get hired. Armed with a fresh bachelor's degree from William Paterson University, Weekes wanted a supervisory job.

Days passed and she never got a call back. She said she is not surprised nor disappointed.

"I didn't expect to get anything," she said. "I don't want to clean up the arena. I could do that without a bachelor degree."
Katie Wang covers Newark. She may be reached at kwang@starledger.com or (973) 392-1504. Those interested in applying for a job at the arena may drop off a resume at the Prudential Center's 11th-floor office at 744 Broad St., Newark.